Áreas naturales de bosque seco tropical en el Valle del Cauca, Colombia: una oportunidad para la restauración

Abstract

One of the potential distribution areas for tropical dry forest in Colombia is Cauca River Valley. Intensive agricultural activity in this zone has been one of the main factors causing its degradation since the middle of the 20th century. This study identifies and locates the natural areas that have persisted from 1984-2014 in the Cauca River Valley, in Valle del Cauca Department, using cartographic information and satellite images (Landsat TM5 and OLI). The results indicate that in spite of the 50% reduction in natural areas due to a 72% increase in cultivated areas, 26% of them have persisted since 1984, especially in the dry warm forest of the alluvial plain and in the dry warm forest of the alluvial piedmont, ecosystems of the helobiome biomes of the Valle del Cauca and the tropical alternohydric zonobiome of Valle del Cauca, respectively. The persistent natural areas identified in the time frame represents an opportunity to initiate ecological restoration processes and monitoring of dry forest vegetation and its cover in Valle del Cauca, considering that few remnants still retain structural and functional characteristics of this Biome and the conditions of connectivity between them are deficient.